Description

Follow the long gully from the floor of the ravine to the top, generally along the summer Great Gully Trail. There may be some brush thrashing at the bottom of the route, depending on the snow depth. Mostly moderate snow down low, a large ice bulge may form about 1/3 of the way up. This bulge may be bypassed by climbing a snowfield to climber's left and rejoining the gully proper higher up. About halfway up the gully narrows and begins to steepen, before widening again. The top 1/3 or so is steep snowfield, reaching about a 45 degree slope before leveling out in the alpine zone near Thunderstorm Junction.

When I did this route, snow conditions were perfect for practicing various crampon and ice ax techniques. We chose to use a running belay for nearly the entire route and bypassed the ice bulge, saving it for another day.

Descend by your choice of trails back to Appalachia. If conditions are good, I recommend walking around the lip of the ravine to go down the Airline, which will give you a nice view of the route you've just climbed.

Location

From the floor of the ravine follow the Great Gully trail, if possible, to base of the gully. Hard to miss.